Sarah L. Friedman

I have always been interested in people and the conditions that shape them. This led me to study literature for my BA, educational psychology for my MA and child development for my Ph.D. My core interest was also expressed in my work in the area of child development and education.

My scientific papers and edited books address a wide range of topics. Most recently, my research has focused on child care and children’s psychological and health development, on the development of children's planning skills and on military connected children whose life conditions present unique stresses and opportunities which were unexplored until very recently.

I find the study of distance communication fascinating. It is part of the life of everybody I know. It is an important tool that can be used to bring people closer or to offend them. And yet, we know very little about the conditions that shape the frequency of its use, the way it is used or the consequences of its use for relationships and for psychological adjustment. I believe that the results of the proposed study will contribute to such understanding and to a public education campaign.

One of our potential backers was concerned that our project was not peer reviewed. My answer was as followed: A parallel study conducted in the US was peer reviewed and a publication based on the US study was also peer reviewed. Our full research plan will be submitted to a funding agency and will be peer reviewed. But, before we submit the full research plan to a funding agency, we need to get the surveys translated professionally from English to Hebrew and then we need to collect and analyze some pilot data in Israel, where the duration of parental military absences are much shorter than in the US. So, our plan is to take one step at a time. First, we will translate the surveys and we ask our friends, colleagues and others interested in the science to support us.
Another potential backer said that she is a pacifist and will not back research plans that propose to study the military. My response was that our study does not promote war. We seek to study parent-adolescent communication when parents are away from home and to find out the extent to which the quantity and the quality of these communications are associated with adolescents' well being.

Nov 21, 2016

Do adolescents do and feel better when their absent military parents communicate with them from afar and are supportive?

One of our potential backers was concerned that our project was not peer reviewed. My answer was as followed: A parallel study conducted in the US was peer reviewed and a publication based on the US study was also peer reviewed. Our full research plan will be submitted to a funding agency and will be peer reviewed. But, before we submit the full research plan to a funding agency, we need to get the surveys translated from English to Hebrew and then we need to collect and analyze some pilot data in Israel, where the duration of absence are much shorter than in the US. So, our plan is to take one step at a time. First, we will translate the surveys and we ask our friends, colleagues and others interested in the science to support us.
Another potential backer said that she is a pacifist and will not back research plans that propose to study the military. My response was that our study does not promote war. We seek to study parent-adolescent communication when parents are away from home and to find out the extent to which the quantity and the quality of these communications are associated with adolescents' well being.

Nov 21, 2016

Do adolescents do and feel better when their absent military parents communicate with them from afar and are supportive?

One of our potential backers was concerned that our project was not peer reviewed. My answer was as followed: A parallel study conducted in the US was peer reviewed and a publication based on the US study was also peer reviewed. Our full research plan will be submitted to a funding agency and will be peer reviewed. But, before we submit the full research plan to a funding agency, we need to get the surveys translated from English to Hebrew and then we need to collect and analyze some pilot data. So our plan is to take one step at a time. First, we will translate the surveys and we ask our friends, colleagues and others interested in the science to support us.
Another potential backer said that she is a pacifist and will not back research plans that propose to study the military. My response was that our study does not promote war. We seek to study parent-adolescent communication when parents are away from home and to find out the extent to which the quantity and the quality of these communication are associated with adolescents' well being.

Nov 21, 2016

Do adolescents do and feel better when their absent military parents communicate with them from afar and are supportive?